Republican Bryan Steil coasted to victory Tuesday, winning the southeastern Wisconsin seat held by his former boss, House Speaker Paul Ryan.

Steil, a lawyer and University of Wisconsin regent, fended off a well-funded challenge from Democratic candidate Randy Bryce, a union ironworker who racked up high-profile endorsements and raked in more than $6 million in campaign cash from around the country during his run.

"Thank you for the opportunity, the trust and confidence you've placed in me, and to the ideas and policies that are going to give us the opportunity to succeed," Steil told supporters during his victory speech. "And to those asking if we're going to take a step forward, tonight is your answer."

Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District is clearly more Republican than Wisconsin as a whole, but that didn't stop Bryce from launching a multimillion-dollar effort to try flip Ryan's seat.

Bryce, known as Iron Stache, got in the race over a year ago, in June 2017, with a viral campaign launch video in which he told Ryan, "You can come work the iron and I'll go to D.C." Bryce quickly won endorsements from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders as well as high-profile Democrats and celebrities.

For months, Bryce campaigned as the man who could "repeal and replace" Ryan.

The race shifted in April, when Ryan announced he would retire at the end of his term.

Still, Bryce in many ways remained the underdog in his race against Steil, in part because the district has leaned Republican in recent races.

Ryan won re-election by 35 points in 2016. Trump won the district by 10 points that same year. Two years earlier, Gov. Scott Walker won the district by 18 points.

Republican Bryan Steil faced off Tuesday against Democrat Randy Bryce for the 1s Congressional District seat being vacated by House Speaker Paul Ryan.(Photo: handout from candidates)

Bryce also was targeted by $2.6 million in attack ads by the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC endorsed by Ryan and House GOP leaders.

Those ads slammed Bryce over his nine arrests, including a 20-year-old arrest for drunken driving, and financial problems, which included late child support payments to his ex-wife. One ad featured Bryce's police officer brother criticizing him; another labeled him a "deadbeat."

"This was a historically challenging midterm election year, and CLF is proud to have played a role in tonight's outcome in Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District," said Corry Bliss, the group's executive director. "We look forward to Bryan’s leadership in Congress to help advance the Republican agenda.”

Bryce, 53, repeatedly condemned the group's ads. He said he thought Republicans decided to spend big in the race because they understood "how symbolic" it would be for a "working person" to take Ryan's spot rather than his friend and former staffer.

After Steil's win, Ryan acknowledged it was a personal win for him.

"This race was very important to me. It’s the district that my family and I call home and it's the district that I have had the honor of representing in Congress for twenty years," Ryan said in a statement. "While Bryan will chart his own course in Washington, I'm glad that voters have given him the chance to fight for the values we share."

Steil, 37, an attorney for the manufacturing company Charter NEX Films and a regent since 2016, is from a prominent Janesville GOP family.

Bryce, who lives in the Racine area, became heavily involved in politics during the 2011 protests at the state Capitol over Walker's Act 10, which sharply limited collective bargaining for the state's public workers. He has run unsuccessfully for the state Assembly, state Senate and for a seat on Racine's School Board, making this his fourth run.

Bryce supports gun control measures such as mandatory background checks, waiting periods and banning military-style weapons, but Steil says the existing laws should be enforced.

Steil supports tighter border security, including building a wall, while Bryce wants to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and backs paths to citizenship for immigrants brought to the country illegally as children.

Bryce supports abortion rights, while Steil opposes abortion, saying that he believes life begins at conception.

The race drew national interest and a flood of campaign contributions for months, in part because it belonged to Ryan.

About 90% of Bryce's campaign contributions came from outside Wisconsin, compared to about 38% for Steil.

Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party, praised Bryce for his work to win the district.

"Working Families Party was one of the first organizations to recruit Randy, support Randy, encourage him to run. So we've been there from the very, very beginning," Mitchell said. "So we're really proud of him. We think what he's done so far has really transformed the district."

Independent candidate Ken Yorgan, a Racine chiropractor, also ran to represent the district.

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Election Inspector Sue Barker (left) helped Mark Carothers (right) to find his address to place him in right ward, as he registered to vote in the Town of Merton at the Stone Bank Fire Station. Michael Sears / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Election Inspector Sue Barker (left) helped John Schwartz (right) to find his address to place him in right ward, as he registered to vote in the Town of Merton at the Stone Bank Fire Station. Michael Sears / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Charles Henery (center left) helped Christine Gronewold (center right) in the voting line as she had forgotten her cane and need a bit of help getting in from her car to the voting table and back out in Delafield at Christ the King Lutheran Church. Michael Sears / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

People catch up with friends and neighbors as they arrive and leave the polling place in the Town of Merton at the Stone Bank Firehouse. The fire truck is an antique in the lobby of the building. Michael Sears / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Tyler Been holds his daughter Margaret Been age 10 months as he feeds his ballot into the election machine to be read in Delafield at Christ the King Lutheran Church. Michael Sears / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Waiting for the clock to strike 7 a.m. , voters wait in line to cast their ballots Tuesday, November 6, 2018 at the Calumet Town Hall in Fond du Lac County, Wis. About 20 people were waiting for the polls to open. Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Caroline Polk, of Milwaukee, holds her sleeping 1-year-old daughter Jamyra Henderson as she waits for her husband Jonathan Henderson to vote at the Boys and Girls Club in Sherman Park in Milwaukee. Mike De Sisti/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Voters wait in line at voting district 10 at Calvary Lutheran Church. The mid-term voting kept poll workers busy as voters waited in lines at most polling stations in Oshkosh. Joe Sienkiewicz/USA Today NETWORK-Wisconsin

Poll workers, Lavina Bufkin (from left) and Jimmie Qualls, right, register voters at Sherman Multiculural School in Milwaukee on Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018. This is Qualls' 50th year work the polls. She said the first year she volunteered she was pregnant with her first child in 1968. Angela Peterson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Alisha Nelson of West Allis proudly holds her "I Voted" sticker after voting at West Allis Central High School. Citizens across the area cast their vote for the midterm election on Tuesday. Mike De Sisti, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Sabrina Hudson (left) checks in with poll worker Pat Tiarks in Butler. Hudson, a new resident of Butler, registered to vote in today's mid-term elections. She was among the many who got up early to cast their ballots. Angela Peterson/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Dawn Crawford, a long-time resident of Butler, gives thumbs up after casting her ballot as the first resident to vote at the Butler Village Hall. For the last 10 years, Crawford has been the first resident in line to vote. It has become somewhat of a competition and tradition between she and some of her neighbors. Angela Peterson/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Audrey Ziegler, 6, is called by her mother, Jacquelyn, after saying hello to poll workers Kathy Eusslin (center) and Deputy Clerk Carolyn Jahnke at the village hall in Butler. Audrey was with her parents, who were among the early morning voters. Angela Peterson/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Chief Elections Inspector Alan Stewart (left) talks with Mike Slowinski and his son Abraham as voters cast their ballots at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Appleton. Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin